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Saakashvili requests court declare his expulsion from Ukraine illegal

On Monday, former Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili was detained in Kiev and expelled to Poland

KIEV, February 14. /TASS/. Kiev’s District Administrative Court has received a lawsuit filed by former Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, the leader of Ukraine’s Rukh Novykh Sil (or the Movement of New Forces), requesting that his expulsion to Poland be declared illegal, the court’s press service said in a statement.

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"The plaintiff requests that actions taken by Ukraine’s State Migration Service, State Border Service and the Interior Ministry on February 12, 2018, aimed at expelling him to the country of previous residence, be declared illegal," the statement reads.

The plaintiff requested the court order the State Migration Service to cancel its decision. The Court is currently considering the possibility of launching an administrative case.

Saakashvili’s citizenship issue

Saakashvili, who earlier served as Georgia’s president, was granted Ukrainian citizenship in May 2015 and appointed to the position of Odessa region governor. On July 26, 2017, Poroshenko stripped him of his Ukrainian citizenship, while Saakashvili had stepped down as governor several days before that.

In September 2017, Saakashvili, backed by a group of supporters, managed to enter Ukraine but was charged with illegal border crossing. Right after that he applied to the Ukrainian State Migration Service for an asylum but was denied. Saakashvili filed an appeal against the Migration Service’s decision, which was rejected by Kiev’s District Administrative Court on January 3.

On Monday, Saakashvili was detained in Kiev and expelled to Poland. However, he stated that he would continue his efforts to return to Ukraine.

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